How stalwarts interpret a raga?

At The Music Academy’s academic session, S. Sowmya spoke on how T. Brinda and S. Ramanathan continue to shape contemporary music. And Prof. R.S. Jayalakshmi highlighted the challenges involved in notating niraval

Day 10 of the Academy Sessions started with S. Sowmya’s presentation on ‘Understanding a Raga through the interpretations of T Brinda and S Ramanathan’. She began her talk by discussing the significance of patanthara (tradition) and how it continues to shape contemporary music. She emphasised the importance of a guru’s teachings while acknowledging how artistes often add additional sangathis (musical phrases) to leave their unique imprint on a composition. She described musical expression as a dynamic language, constantly evolving through conceptual changes.

Using examples from Saveri, she highlighted differences in interpretation. For instance, in ‘Ivan yaaro’, S. Ramanathan slightly elevated the Gandharam and Nishadham, whereas in ‘Sri rajagopala’, the notes would not be elevated. Mukta Ma, however, emphasised lowering the notes in Saveri.

Sowmya pointed out that Saveri, now classified under Malava Gowla, was earlier listed under Thodi in older texts. She stressed the importance of understanding and interpreting these shifts, as well as being mindful of the tendency to ‘round off’ swaras. She explained the concept of ‘alpatvam’, which refers to subtlety in both quantity and frequency, advocating for a balance between traditional adherence and innovation in music.

The connect between alapana and kriti

Sowmya expressed her opinion that a raga alapana should maintain a connection to the composition being presented. While she encouraged sticking to the prayogas inherent in the composition, she also welcomed innovation for those seeking excitement. Using Sahana as an example, she explained how the gandharam is predominantly handled and cited rare phrases in Tyagaraja’s ‘Giripai’ that are seldom heard today. Her students demonstrated these sangathis beautifully, illustrating the nuances. She further elaborated on ragas under the Kaanada constellation, such as Atana, Sahana, Abhogi and Kannada.

Transitioning to Surutti, she highlighted the prominence of the nishadham as the jiva swara and the subtlety of the dhaivatam, based on her guru S. Ramanathan’s teachings. She contrasted this with the Dhanammal school, which gives dhaivatam more prominence but in a refined manner to avoid sounding like Kedaragowla, and cited examples such as ‘Bhajana parulake’ and ‘Mariyada teliyakane’.

She suggested that these stylistic variations between various schools could provide a vast field for research, even suitable for doctoral studies.

Sowmya encouraged students to explore stylistic developments and banis (traditions), emphasising that there is no absolute right or wrong. Ultimately, she stressed the importance of enjoying the music, as it naturally inspires curiosity about its origins, evolution, and aesthetics.

Use of gandharams

During the Q&A session, veteran musician and guru Suguna Varadachari highlighted the Sahana Ata tala varnam by Patnam Subramania Iyer, where the phrase ‘mggrs’ uses both sadharana and antara gandharams. This feature continues to be sung today. Sowmya added that interpreting notations correctly is crucial, as they might not always indicate which gandharam to use.

Senior Carnatic musician Bombay Jayashri commended Sowmya for delivering an insightful and engaging musical lesson.

R.S. Jayalakshmi on notations for niraval

The second lecture demonstration of the day featured veena vidushi Prof. R.S. Jayalakshmi, assisted by her granddaughter Charulatha Chandrasekhar, on the topic of notations for niraval by Kallidaikurichi Vedanta Bhagavatar.

Jayalakshmi began by highlighting the complexity and challenges involved in notating niraval, an intricate aspect of Carnatic music.

Kallidaikurichi Vedanta Bhagavatar, who lived between 1878 and 1940, was a multifaceted musician — a composer of about 100 kritis, a guru, and a harikatha performer. He trained under Subbarama Dikshitar and Ambi Dikshitar.

Vedanta Bhagavatar authored a book called Sangita Tatva Pradarshini, also known as Pallavi Parijatham where notations of niraval are mentioned. However, Jayalakshmi concentrated on his manuscripts in this lecture-demonstration, offering valuable insights into his work. Notably, Pallavi Swarakalpavalli (circa 1900) includes notations for kalpanaswaras. In the manuscript under discussion, titled Pallavi, Alapana, Neraval and Swarams, Vedanta Bhagavatar was assisted by his student Kallidaikurichi Mahadeva Bhagavatar.

R.S. Jayalakshmi noted the absence of tanam in these manuscripts, which otherwise documented detailed notations for other manodharmam aspects.

Meticulous approach to notation

Jayalakshmi showcased a manuscript of an eight-kalai pallavi in Sankarabharanam, with the lyrics ‘Mandhahaasa vadhana, hare krishna’. She elaborated on the interpretative aspects of speed, tala execution, and gamakas, which are not explicitly mentioned in the manuscript. Charulatha demonstrated this pallavi and Jayalakshmi pointed out how Vedanta Bhagavatar notated anu swaras and how sahitya placement in the niraval has remained consistent with the base melody. Despite the lengthy tala cycle (128 mathras), the words of the pallavi were spaced out significantly, showing how more importance was given to the music. R.S. Jayalakshmi highlighted unusual phrases in the notation, such as gpS, typically found in modern renditions of Raga Kadanakuthuhalam.

The niraval notations showcased Vedanta Bhagavatar’s emphasis on rhythmic patterns, with some pushing the arudi syllable by a pulse. Vedanta Bhagavatar incorporated patterns of 7, 5, 3 and 9 (misram, khandam, tisram, and sankeernam) and even notated trikalam for niraval, which Charulatha demonstrated. Interestingly, the same pallavi has also been notated in raga Sahana, further showcasing Vedanta Bhagavatar’s meticulous approach to notation.

Vedanta Bhagavatar also notated kalpanaswaras and suggested their patterns could be adapted for niraval. R.S. Jayalakshmi addressed a query from The Music Academy secretary V. Sriram confirming that Vedanta Bhagavatar’s manuscripts did not use symbols from his guru Subbarama Dikshitar’s Sampradaya Pradarshini. Senior musician guru Suguna Varadachari added that the snP phrase in the lower octave also appears in Tyagaraja’s ‘Kshira Saagara Vihara’.

The expert committee recommended teaching students to practice four-kalai and eight-kalai pallavis. It was noted that the manuscript lacked notations for dhurita kala niraval, documenting only up to sama kala niraval. Furthermore, Jayalakshmi noted that Vedanta Bhagavatar’s Sangita Tatva Pradarshini was the first text to use the term niraval, with earlier works referring to niraval as sangati.

Bombay Jayashri, who summarised the proceedings and expressed gratitude to Jayalakshmi and Charulatha Chandrasekhar for their presentation.

Published - January 11, 2025 05:53 pm IST